MAPUTO,
Mozambique (AP) — As Mozambique's rainy season begins, the government is
preparing for the worst in case the country's suffers another of its
frequent and deadly floods.
The
impoverished country has set aside $32 million of its national budget
to deal with the possibility of flooding in an effort to avoid disaster
and save lives, the government announced Wednesday.
"We
are already in the rainy season," said deputy foreign minister, Enrique
Banze. "This is a critical moment and needs a great deal of attention,
not only from the government, but from all Mozambicans." Banze said the
funds would cover disaster response efforts and the needs of people who
may be displaced.
Mozambique's
government has drawn up a contingency plan with various possibilities
for the country that lies on Africa's southeastern coastline. The worst
case scenario imagines strong cyclones and the possibility of
earthquakes in the north of the country which is affected by the East
Africa Rift faultline. A less severe problem would be localized flooding
that could affect 318,000 people during January and February, the
wettest months of the year.
Mozambique
is frequently hit by floods. In 2000 the country experienced its worst
flood, in which more than 800 people were killed and hundreds of
thousands were made homeless when waters severely submerged whole towns.
Last year, flooding in the north and central parts of the country killed at least 55 people and displaced nearly 170,000 people.